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Murder, rape and torture... not by Isis, but the Iraqi military

Over many months, the photographer Ali Arkady bore witness to the brutality of our allies in Iraq. Now, as victory is declared over Isis in Mosul, he risks his life to reveal the truth. Matthew Campbell reports

Inhuman treatment: a shepherd whose son had fought for Isis is tortured by the Iraqi military during operations in Mosul, 2016ALI ARKADY / VII MENTOR PROGRAM / REDUX / EYEVINE

The Sunday Times, July 23 2017, 12:01am

One man hangs from the ceiling, arms stretched at an impossible angle behind him, moaning in agony. Another kneels in the sand, then leaps up, trying to flee, begging for his life. Two men run after him, shooting. He falls, his body twitching at each bullet.

The video looks like the handiwork of Isis, which relishes posting horrors online. What makes these atrocities even more shocking is that they were carried out not by the bearded extremists of the caliphate but by the Iraqi government’s American-trained security forces.

Ali Arkady, a prizewinning Kurdish photographer, has risked his life by publishing what amounts to evidence of war crimes by our allies in the fight against terror.